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What about Ollie? And Pete?
I haven’t heard anything from this … man. No signs that they’ve been found.
Could they still be alive?
They had phones on them too; maybe they’ve already called for help.
I can’t sit here and do nothing. I have to try to find them. Or at least the helicopter. Anything to get back home. Waiting it out isn’t good enough. I have to act now.
I immediately start chewing on the rope again, not giving a crap about it hurting. I’ll bite through the pain, literally, just to free myself.
Asking that brute is no use. He keeps glaring at me as if I’m the stranger here. As if he doesn’t know what to do with me. I know he can talk—I’ve heard his English—so he knows how to speak. The problem is that he won’t, and I don’t know why, but I don’t care either.
If he won’t help me, I’ll do it myself.
While he’s off looking for more prey to hunt, I chew through the rope. I don’t stop. Not even when I hear him open something outside and making lots of noise with something that chops. I don’t care what he’s doing. As long as he doesn’t see me, I’m good.
The moment the rope snaps, my heart skips a beat, and I find it hard to contain my excitement. But I have to lay low. He can’t know I’m free, or he’ll tie me up again. No, I have to wait until it’s nighttime before I make my escape.
So I lay down on top of the rope and pretend it’s still attached.
When he comes inside again, I don’t get up.
When he feeds me, I chew through the jerky and swallow it down without complaints.
When he smiles, I smile back, feigning thankfulness even though I’m more worried and scared than anything.
Although I can see in his eyes that he won’t hurt me, I’m still afraid he’ll throw me in that pit again if he finds out I freed myself. And I refuse to go back in there. I’m not an animal. I’m a human being … and apparently, he hasn’t had contact with a lot of them to know how to treat them.
Still, watching him toil around the hut, making things neat and tidy again, and crafting little pots and spoons from wood makes me feel for him. I don’t know if it’s pity or sadness in my heart, and I can’t think about it too much because I know I shouldn’t get attached.
I don’t know him, but he captured me as if I was a treasure he found in the wreckage. I have to keep in mind things can go bad at any moment.
And I really, really want to go home.
More than anything.
When the sun has been gone for a while, and the only remaining light in the hut is the small candle beside my bed, he starts prepping the bed. He places a pillow made of fur on top, blows out the candle, and attempts to crawl behind me.
“Wait,” I mutter, which makes him pause. If we’re going to share a bed, the least we should know is what to call each other. “What … what’s your name?”
He frowns. “Lock.”
Lock. What a strange name for a man like him.
Not that it matters. Biting my lip, I respond, “I’m Juliet Baker.”
“Jul …”
He seems to have some trouble pronouncing it.
“Juliet,” I repeat.
“Julet.”
“No, Juliet.”
“Jule,” he murmurs, his voice lower than usual.
I shake my head. “Ju-li-et.” It can’t be that hard, can it?
“Ju-et.”
I roll my eyes and sigh. “Jules is fine.”
“Jules.” He smiles. “Jules.”
I don’t know why, but every time he says my name like that, my whole body tingles. Shit.
Don’t let his husky voice get to you so much, Jules.
He’s just a man.
Who captured you.
And is still keeping you as a pet.
I take a breath and sigh. He keeps staring at me for a few more seconds before crawling onto the bed as well.
I tense up the moment he lies down beside me, and I can feel his breath on my skin even though he doesn’t touch me. There’s no telling what he’ll do if I don’t fight this, so I force myself to stay vigilant while I hear him fall into a deep sleep. He snores while I refuse to sleep.
When I’m sure he’s far beyond the possibility of waking up, I slowly inch up from the bed. He groans, so I stop momentarily and watch him roll over on the bed, facing the ceiling. His face is quite rugged but in a good way. Handsome, even.
What are you doing, Jules? Get out of there!
Right, I shouldn’t be thinking about this at all.
It’s time to run.
I quickly rid myself of the rope around my wrists and throw it on the ground. I put on my shoes again, which he took off and placed underneath the bed.
